“We don’t know of any other player in the consultancy sector that has developed as extensive a portal as the COWIportal,” explains Henrik Steen Pedersen who has helped to develop the project side of the new, internal platform that integrates several IT systems at COWI, from the intranet and financial control to project pages and e-mail. He continues: “In project terms, the newportal is unique because all phases of a project are gathered in the same place. Previously, data was spread across different systems depending on the status of the project. Now, everyone at COWI can follow a project from start to end, and project managers can keep a much closer eye on finances than before.”
By 2010, all 4,000 employees in COWI’s regions around the world will be connected to the portal. Initially, it will be accessible in Denmark, Norway and Lithuania with other companies and regions following suit over time. The portal is an internal tool for news, project overviews and employee communication, but customers and collaboration partners will also have access to it.“External partners previously had access to selected COWI project pages via a special section of the website. With the advent of the portal, external parties will have access to additional elements, including the e-mail and alendar functions. The advantage is that everyone involved in a project will have access to the same schedule and the same up-to-date documents. This means, for instance, that minutes won’t go out by e-mail in 12 different versions.”
Henrik Steen Pedersen is convinced that the benefits of the COWIportal will quickly become evident:“Gathering all the information in one place where it can be accessed by all employees in different countries, companies and business areas will strengthen our working procedures, collaborative spirit and effectiveness.”